7.62 mm Ruchnoy Pulemyot Light Machine Gun

DPM 7.62 mm Ruchnoy Pulemyot Light Machine Gun

Operation: Automatic fire, only
Length: 49.8 in. (1265 mm)
Weight unloaded: 26 lb 13 oz (12.2 kg)
Barrel: 23.8 in. 4 grooves, right hand twist
Magazine: 47 round detachable pan
Cyclic Rate: 520-580 rpm
Muzzle velocity: 2770 fps, 2903 ft-lb
Ammunition: 148 gr bullet, 48 gr charge, Russian Light Ball M'08
Effective Range: Probably about 1000 meters

The 7.62 mm Ruchnoy Pulemyot DP (Degtyaryova pakhotnyi) was adopted by the Soviet army in 1928. It is extremely simple, yet remarkably reliable and robust. It remained the standard light gun until the 50's, and large numbers of them were used by the North Korean and Chinese Communists in the Korean war. The secret of the DP was the simple locking device, which makes use of locking flaps on the bolt, pushed out by the firing pin. The DP proved resistant to dust and dirt, and free from any serious vices.

However, the DP did have some distinct faults. The return spring weakened with heat from the hot barrel, and the bipod legs bent and broke from rough handling. The DPM, shown above, moved the return spring to the rear of the bolt and protruded over the small of the butt in a cylindrical housing, where it prevented the gunner from grasping the gun in the usual way, and so induced the fitting of a pistol grip.

The bipod was replaced by a stronger version, attached to the barrel casing, which raised the roll center of the gun and made it easier to hold upright.

Still, the heavy, awkward flat pan magazine was easily damaged, and a continuous operational problem. The RP46 is a belt-fed version of the DPM, and yet can accept the pan magazine if the belt feed mechanism is removed. The RP46 has a higher rate of fire (650 rpm) but is two pounds heavier than the DPM, and has a distinctive carrying handle.
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About Vietnam Protesters

A SOLDIER DIED TODAY

He was getting old and paunchy and his hair was falling fast,
And he sat around the Legion, telling stories of the past.
Of a war that he had fought in and the deeds that he had done,
In his exploits with his buddies; they were heroes, every one.

And tho' sometimes, to his neighbors, his tales became a joke,
All his Legion buddies listened, for they knew whereof he spoke.
But we'll hear his tales no longer for old Bill has passed away,
And the world's a little poorer, for a soldier died today.

He will not be mourned by many, just his children and his wife,
For he lived an ordinary and quite uneventful life.
Held a job and raised a family, quietly going his own way,
And the world won't note his passing, though a soldier died today.

When politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state,
While thousands note their passing and proclaim that they were great.
Papers tell their whole life stories, from the time that they were young,
But the passing of a soldier goes unnoticed and unsung.

Is the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land
A guy who breaks his promises and cons his fellow man?
Or the ordinary fellow who, in times of war and strife,
Goes off to serve his Country and offers up his life?

A politician's stipend and the style in which he lives
Are sometimes disproportionate to the service that he gives.
While the ordinary soldier, who offered up his all,
Is paid off with a medal and perhaps, a pension small.

It's so easy to forget them for it was so long ago,
That the old Bills of our Country went to battle, but we know
It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys,
Who won for us the freedom that our Country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger, with your enemies at hand,
Would you want a politician with his ever-shifting stand?
Or would you prefer a soldier, who has sworn to defend
His home, his kin and Country and would fight until the end?

He was just a common soldier and his ranks are growing thin,
But his presence should remind us we may need his like again.
For when countries are in conflict, then we find the soldier's part
Is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.

If we cannot do him honor while he's here to hear the praise,
Then at least let's give him homage at the ending of his days.
Perhaps just a simple headline in a paper that would say,

Our Country is in mourning, for

 A SOLDIER DIED TODAY

© 1987 A. Lawrence Vaincourt


© Kortegaard Engineering ©

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